Bayt.com, the Middle East’s number one job site, recently conducted an online poll focussing on environmental issues in the workplace. The results showed that employees in the region are keen to play their part in protecting the environment, while many felt that more could be done by their companies to ensure this happens.

A total of1,500 people participated in the poll, which was conducted on the Bayt.com homepage through September.

When asked if offices should go “carbon neutral,”49.6 per cent of respondents agreed, stating, “Yes, it's time we did more to address global warming.” Carbon neutral – a term which refers to people or organizations offsetting their carbon emissions by taking positive action, such as investing in ecological initiatives – elicited the response “I don't know what you're talking about” among36.5 per cent of those polled.

Encouragingly, almost42 per cent of respondents reported that their offices had gone “paper free,” while18.8 per cent said they printed on both sides of the paper. Some39.4 per cent stated that “there are piles of paper on my desk.”

Regulation of air conditioning was also a hot topic, with69.3 per cent of those polled believing that air conditioning usage should be regulated to save energy. Just14.3 per cent of those polled believed that unless staff benefit from the money saved, they didn’t care.

“These results are generally encouraging, in that they show there is awareness in the workplace with regard to environmental issues,” said Rabea Ataya, CEO, Bayt.com. “On the other hand, the poll also indicated that awareness doesn’t always translate into concrete action. Certainly, employers could do more to create an environmentally-friendly workplace. And they should know that they will have the support of most employees if they do.”